Gender and gender diversity

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Unit 623

June 2025

Gender and gender diversity

The purpose of this activity is to demonstrate how general practitioners can positively influence the lives of gender diverse individuals through gender-affirming healthcare. 

General practitioners are uniquely placed in supporting gender diverse people across their lifespans, and in affirming their sense of self and gender identity. Gender diversity arises when a person’s gender identity and expression do not align with the binary concepts of gender.

Gender diverse individuals face a multitude of challenges stemming from long-standing societal expectations, which can adversely affect their physical and mental health. This can manifest as gender dysphoria, a condition marked by distress due to the incongruence between one’s gender identity and sex assigned at birth. The transgender and gender diverse population experiences significantly higher rates of anxiety, depression, self鈥慼arm and suicide risk when compared with the general population.

Access to healthcare for transgender and gender diverse individuals is fraught with barriers, including discrimination, fear of mistreatment, and discomfort in discussing their transgender and gender diverse health needs. More concerningly, the threat of verbal, physical or sexual abuse within healthcare settings is felt by gender diverse patients.

As general practitioners, it is essential to educate ourselves beyond the consultation room to dismantle these barriers. This unit of check presents five cases illustrating how general practitioners can positively influence the lives of gender diverse individuals through gender-affirming healthcare. Creating a safe clinical environment, understanding the informed consent model for initiating gender-affirming hormone therapy and recognising when to refer patients to other specialists and allied and mental health professions are crucial elements of effective care.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this activity, participants will be able to:

  • discuss the different domains of gender affirmation, including social, legal, medical and surgical affirmation
  • identify appropriate early referral for transgender and gender diverse patients to specialists, allied health professionals, mental health professionals and community supports as required
  • describe investigations involved in the initiation and ongoing management of gender-affirming hormone therapy
  • prioritise gender-affirming practices in the general practice setting to ensure the safety of patients
  • describe the provision of comprehensive and safe care for patients undergoing gender鈥慳ffirming hormone therapy
  • describe the informed consent model of gender-affirming care in general practice.

Case studies

Below is a list of the case studies found in this month's unit of check. To see how these case studies unfold and gain valuable insights into this month's topic, log into gplearning to complete the course. 

Alyce presents with her child, Elle, aged 10 years, wanting to talk to you about Elle’s gender identity. Elle’s given name is Lucas, and she still uses this name, as well as he/him pronouns, at school and outside the home environment. Alyce explains that while Elle was always a child with more stereotypically feminine traits, the change in pronouns and name has only been recent. The family is still adjusting to the changes. You establish today that Elle would like you to use her affirmed name and pronouns (she/her).

Corey has just turned 16 years of age and comes to see you with his mother, Anne. This is the first time he has visited your practice. As they enter the consulting room, you notice they are both very quiet, and Corey is looking at the floor. His left distal forearm is bandaged with a crepe bandage.

Shannon, a transgender male (pronouns he/him) aged 22 years, presents to your clinic seeking gender-affirming hormone therapy. Originally from rural Tasmania, Shannon is studying to become a nurse in the metropolitan centre where your clinic is located. He has been considering gender-affirming hormones for a long time. 

Rosa, a transgender woman aged 23 years, presents to your practice to talk about hormonal treatment. Rosa first presented to your practice nine months ago and, with the supportive gender-affirming assistance of your colleague at the time, started her social transition. Rosa tells you she has since transitioned socially at work and at home, and this has gone very well. Despite this, she has been feeling dysphoric.

Sol (he/they), a gender-fluid, transmasculine person aged 21 years, has been on gender-affirming hormone therapy with transdermal testosterone gel for two years. He presents to you requesting an STI screen.

CPD

This unit of check is approved for 10 hours of CPD activity (two hours per case). The 10 hours, when completed, including the online questions, comprise five hours’ 鲍鱼视频al Activities and five hours’ Reviewing Performance.
鲍鱼视频al
Activities
5
hours
Measuring
Outcomes
0
hours
Reviewing
Performance
5
hours

Complete check online

To enroll in this check unit online: 

  1. Log into  home page
  2. Select 'Browse' and search for 1207566
  3. Select the course and register

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